Elden Ring just got a little easier for single player purists. Patch 1.06, released today, adds a new way to advance White Mask Varré’s quest – something that previously used the multiplayer system to invade other players’ worlds. Now Varré lets you defeat a new character to join the order of his assassins, something that gives early access to an important part of the game. This comes in addition to a number of other changes, including the option to invade or aid players from a much greater distance.
Varré’s multiplayer demand has been a rare pain point for people – including me – who were either not interested in player-to-player duels, or who played in offline mode. Avoiding his quest didn’t completely shut you out of all areas, but it did delay one of them until quite late in the game. That area happens to contain one of the best runic collecting spots in Elden Ring, so it was annoying to say the least. (Speaking of that farming area, so far there’s no indication it’s been patched from 1.06, despite players’ lingering concerns.) I won’t spoil the name of the new NPC you should be targeting, but it seems to have already been noted on some Varré quest guides.
In addition to this change, 1.06 includes a number of tweaks aimed at: Elden Ring’s multiplayer mode. Among other things, this will allow you to send cooperative summoning boards to “distant areas” or invade them, hopefully making it easier to find a multiplayer friend or foe. As Polygon points out, it reduces the distance of the teleportation-like Bloodhound Step ability and improves on the somewhat similar Quickstep, but makes both less effective if you spam them continuously. It too reduces damage and build-up of the blood attack for Corpse Piler, the ability associated with the Rivers of Blood katana. It’s a patch that should help bridge players of all persuasions until the game is over rumored expansion.